Cold, but not for some

With many of us dealing with temperatures well below normal right now, a little contrast might be helpful.

I discovered this mantis carcass inside the house yesterday. If you're wondering why the lighting is so strange...

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...it's because I found it inside my fireplace stove, but only after the flames were large enough to cast suitable light:

I really should have checked the firebox before lighting my first fire of the year, especially since I found two mantis carcasses in here a few years back, and an egg case to boot!

It was too late to check for an egg case now.

This dead mantis must not have been completely desiccated, as its body started oozing and swelling in a disturbing way as the temperature rose.

(There was so little light available!)

Although I'm always sad to lose any mantis eggs (if indeed there was an egg case in here somewhere), at least I have one in the refrigerator -- I don't think I ever wrote a post about that. I found a couple around the deck this fall, and was able to save one.

Here's hoping you all stay warm and that your plants prove to be equal to the challenge of this arctic air!

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